This was a training run for Autumn 100, an ultramarathon we will be running in October. We carried all of our mandatory kit in our hydration vests, which included: raincoats, long sleeved base layers, headtorches, foil blankets, hats, gloves and cups, as well as all food we required.
Having cycled to our start point (Oxford station) from our home, Sam realised he had forgotten his water bottles so he bought a Lucozade bottle from the station which he used instead. Note that this purchase was made before we started the run, so it still counts as unsupported. We started the run together at 9:03am, and only used two public water points on the canal for hydration, and ate only the food we had carried from the start. While we did not require any of the mandatory kit for the run, it was good for us to get used to the weight for our 100 mile race in October.
The ground was dry and firm throughout, which was not a surprise for the time of year. Most of the route was runnable, but there were a few short sections where the riverbank had eroded significantly leaving half of a path which we had to carefully walk on. Fortunately neither of us fell into the river, but there were a few close calls. In the winter months or after significant rain, we would imagine the path would be muddy and would therefore require trail shoes. Any confident off-road runner or walker who has completed 20 miles or similar in the past should have no trouble completing this route.
Although we came across some geese, swans, cows, horses, walkers, runners and boaters en route, none of them ran with us, assisted us in any way or knew that we were completing this run. Both of us completed every step of the run together, except a few points where one of us briefly slowed down or sped up for some reason or another. For example, Sam had walk breaks to drink water at different times from me (Mary).
After we arrived at our end point (Banbury station) together, we took a train back to Oxford station, which took a mere 18 minutes compared to the 4 hours 19 minutes it took us to run the same distance. Although the trains were sparse on a Sunday (every hour), it was quick and cheap to get back to the start of the route, where our bikes were waiting for us. Overall this run went very well for us, and apart from stiff legs and a couple of scratches from vegetation neither of us are feeling any ill effects.